A Canadian university is under fire after it removed the weight scale at its campus gym last week.
Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario, says the decision is "in keeping with current fitness and social trends," according to a sign posted where the scale used to stand, according to the campus newspaper, The Charlatan.
Bruce Marshall, manager of health and wellness at the gym, said focusing only on weight can have a negative impact.
“We don’t believe being fixated on weight has any positive effect on your health and well-being,” Marshall said in an email to the Charlatan. “The body is an amazing machine and even when we are dieting and training it will often find a homeostasis at a certain weight.”
"It takes weeks, even months to make a permanent change in your weight. So why obsess about it?” he added. “Why not look at other indicators?”
Samar El Faki, a first-year student in the enriched support program, said in a Facebook message that she was appalled at some of the backlash.
“Scales are very triggering,” she said. “I think people are being insensitive because they simply don’t understand. They think eating disorders are a choice when they are actually a serious illness.”
But some students disagree with removing the scale.
Marko Miljusevic, a second-year computer science student, said in a Facebook message that students "can’t handle the number that shows up on the scale, then don’t step on it,” the Charlatan reported.
“People that dislike how they look will dislike how they look regardless of a number being attached to it,” Miljusevic added.